


shadows.

by Alectrona (DreamyRequiem)



Series: hope and stardust [1]
Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Alternate Universe - Role Reversal, Gen, Role Reversal, Some Minor OCs - Freeform, mostly for background
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-20
Updated: 2018-04-27
Packaged: 2019-03-07 07:10:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,813
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13429539
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DreamyRequiem/pseuds/Alectrona
Summary: A voice whispers to her in her dreams and she fights and she fights and she fights. She drowns and she wakes, with the sun beating down on her and the foreboding for the future burning in her chest.----Kingdom Hearts Role Reversal AU





	1. prologue

**Author's Note:**

> unbeta`d

_Hello, Little One. It's a pleasure to finally meet you._

It was as if the wind and light itself were whispering in her ears as she stumbled through her room. She reached up to steady herself but her hands just went through the walls like they were made of vapor. Beyond them there was nothing but a deep darkness and she felt her feet slip out from underneath her and she fell.

The darkness gave way like she was sinking through murky sea water. Her arms flailed and twisted as she tried to gain traction through the shadows--but all that happened was that her body slipped farther into the shadows and slippery darkness.

And then, all at once, the darkness was stripped away beneath her feet, revealing a platform of shining stained glass. It depicted a young woman, her black hair curled around her face and her pale as snow hands clutching her sun yellow dress. A pretty cottage in a forest was drawn behind her, as if to say 'this is where she is protected'.

_Clear your mind, Little One. Wake up, and see what's in front of you._

She blinked, tearing her gaze from the platform. A pedestal shone before her and two more from either side. A shield; a sword; and a staff. For a moment, she wanted to hold them all and keep them forever--how else would she be able to protect all those she could? Except the Voice pushed her to pick only one, one with which she could protect all.

In the end, she picked the shield, its heavy weight a comfort in her hands. She wondered why the other two remained, why they still shone with light before her if she could only choose one.

 _Pick one_ , The Voice murmured, _To give up._

That is an easy choice, she decided. She thought about the wand, the magic burning from within--but she took the sword and let it fade away instead. She didn't need strength: All she needed was a shield and magic. That was enough to protect her Dearest.

She blacked out.

In the next place, the next platform, another woman wearing a flowing dress of blue. The background was an image caught as a carriage drove through a forest, lit up by the lanterns around it. The platform shone from within, same as the last.

It's quiet and she thought she would be fine here. The Voice hummed at her in disagreement and her hands itched. If she wasn't going to be fine, then why? It wasn't as if there was anything here that could hurt her.

The shield she had chosen suddenly flashed into her hands and the itching stopped. Oh, huh, was that her hands had itched? She'd have to keep that in mind, she decided. She frowned and stepped towards a gleaming light ahead of her.

 _Be careful_ , the Voice crooned, _The closer you get to the light, the deeper the darkness becomes._

Darkness? Before she could question it, inky ant like creatures peeled themselves from the ground, twitching and wriggling towards her. They were....actually horrifying. She clenched the shield so tight, her knuckles with white. She had to fight--or at least hold them off.

She breathed and swung the shield, catching one of the things across its face. It shrieked in anger at her, leaving her to stumble back as fear roared up in her chest. What the hell, they didn't have mouths, how was it screaming--

Something snaked up her leg and she yowled, the cold raising every hair on her body. What the hell, what the hell, let her be free, get her away from this cold--

Warmth, as the sun beat down on her and the sand crunched beneath her fingers. Oh, she was back in safety, home. Gagging a bit, hoping to scrub her nightmare from her mind, she rolled over and stood up. It was quiet, down here. She frowned deeply, because the island was never eerily quiet like this, even when she was there alone.

Not even the wind or waves made a sound.

Once more scared, she slowly made her way across the island and finally spotted someone else--Three somebodies actually. Biggs and Wedge, the eternal duo, and Marlene. She was a little surprised to see the latter: She didn't come to the play island as much as she used to.

But that's fine. As long as she wasn't entirely alone here. She trudged across the dirt and up the ladder, her hair sticking to the back fo her neck as she sweated. Huh, without the wind, it was hotter than she was used to on the play island.

She stumbled across the wooden flats the children's parents had built when they’re only three--or when she was only three--and smiled at the sight of her three friends (even if they weren't as close as those two were--). And then she stopped, because. All three of them stood unnaturally still, staring off into the water or the sky or at something she couldn't see.

The fear roared back up as she reached out a hand to touch Biggs' shoulder. The boy looked at her and said, in an unnatural voice, "What do you want out of life?"

What? He repeated the question, as if she hadn't hear it the first time. She could only stare in mounting horror as Biggs repeated the same question over and over again--and so she blurted: "See rare sights!"

Biggs went quiet, as if he had never spoken in the first place.

Shaken, she approached the other two, scared of the same result. Wedge tilted his head at her and said, "What are you so afraid of?" Well, that seemed to be the case huh?

"Losing my friends." She whispered and he nodded seriously before going still and quiet again. She didn't know if she liked the quiet or the repeating question--both scared her and made her want to turn and run. Letting out a deep breath, she approached Marlene.

Marlene was rocking on her heels as she watched the sky, the only movement besides the silent lapping waves. She reached out and then stopped as Marlene's voice echoed. "What's most important to you?"

These questions felt strange and weird and made her uncomfortable. She just wanted everyone to go back to normal. She wanted her friends back.

Well, that was answer enough wasn't it?

"My friends," She said decisively, reaching for Marlene's hand again. As she reached the Voice spoke, Oh little one, you shall begin in the dusk, wading through the darkness to reach the dawn. Your journey may be difficult--but you shall find your way to overcome it all.

She fell into the shadows, as the world dissolved into particles of sand. Oh, so. She had never woken up to begin with, huh? That's too bad, she thought, because she really wanted to wake up right now.

Her eyes opened and she sat on another platform. A woman wearing a fancy blue--or maybe pink?--dress. A pretty forest was depicted in the background, with a tiny hut hidden between the dusky trees. Ignoring that, there was a chest ahead of her, decorated with red and gold metal.

Getting to her feet, she called that hand itch and the shield appeared. She tugged at the lid with a frown with her free hand. Maybe she could use the shield to leverage the lid open...as she tried she accidentally tapped the lid with the shield. And the lock clicked open, the lid lifted ever so slightly.

Inside was a little green bottle, the inner liquid glittering with some unknown power. Was that really all that was in this large chest? She frowned but scooped it out. Better than nothing, even if she had no idea this was for.

Sticking it in her jacket pocket, she turned from the chest to see a set of the inky dark beings behind her. More of the same beings that had attacked her before, as she struggled on another platform. She swallowed and charged with her shield hefted forward to cover herself. Her charge they only had startled them, not damaged them.

Time for head smashing via shield again, then.

The squelching sounds that came from her slams made her cringe and wish she was anywhere else. Why was she doing this anyway? It seemed pointless and she didn't understand why she had to fight. What would this even accomplish?

Her frustration mounted as she was unable to kill the last one: It was just fast, too far from her swings. She was going to get hurt at this rate and she had a feeling she didn't want to get hurt by one of these things.

It swung its claws at her and she blocked with the shield. Her arm seemed to vibrate as she blocked the blow, her teeth clattering. That attack had thrown her off and wished she had the toy sword she used for her silly little spars with her friends.

(That was almost always more like playing then real spars than the islands defense force did.)

She pushed back.

The thing screeched at her, angry that she had even dared to fight back. She felt her resolve strengthen and she slammed her shield into the monster, letting out a deep breath as it vanished like the other ones.

Safe. She was safe now, away from those inky beasts. Allowing herself to flop down, she let out a long deep breath from her lungs. Okay, okay, now she just needed to...figure out how to wake up maybe? Or maybe get out of whatever nightmare world she's been stuck in.

When she turned her head, she saw a fancy ornate door appear before her and she gazed at it with the thought of 'well, it's not like this can get any weirder.'

After a couple minutes she stood up and poked at the door with her shield, wondering if it would open up like the chest from earlier did. A lock clicked and she sighed: Why in the world was a shield able to unlock locked doors and chests? That made no sense whatsoever.

She expected the empty doorway to lead nowhere but well. That wasn't true because there she was, on a pale blue platform, somewhere completely different from where she had just been. Oddly enough, this place felt far more familiar than the other places did.

 _Hello, Little One._ The Voice hummed above, below, around her. _Do you remember the darkness? Be wary of it--as you would of too much light. Darkness will drown you._

What?

She spun around as a hand wretched out of the platform and wrapped around her own. Her shadow ripped itself from the ground and grinned at her. All she wanted to do was scream at the ghastly smile and she struggled. Darkness roiled up around her ankles like displaced quicksand and she now screamed.

_You will be fine._

Her eyes snapped open as the distant light shone on her. Her shadow was gone and there was a distant hissing sound, coming from somewhere. Beneath her feet, on the new platform, a woman with brown hair and a golden dress seemed to spin across the stain glass. She wondered who these women were.

The shield flashed into her hand and she stared into the darkness as she awaited her shadow. She'd win this time--she won't drown! With that thought, she shored her will and resolved and waited.

A hand peeked out from over the platform. This wouldn't be so bad except--the hand was as big as she was. She swallowed as the hand's owner pulled itself up, a massive being that could squash her light a bug.

Was this her shadow? She faltered and wondered if she could handle a thing like this. It had looked so normal a moment ago, even if it had horrified her down to her bones. She could just slap it silly with her shield--this? What the hell was she supposed to do against this thing with a shield?

Well, she thought as it reached down, she doesn't have a choice huh?

She fought and screamed. Its reaching attack had been to create a portal of darkness beneath her feet, which summoned poor of the tiny ones to the forefront. She had to deal with those as she dodged the fists and orbs of something being thrown at her.

What the hell, what the hell, what the hell, she wanted to screech as she leapt over and slid under the fists. Oh hell, oh hell--She shuddered, as she felt the little ones' claws rake her ankles and legs. She kicked them off and bodily slammed into the massive shadow's legs. The slam barely made it twitch, though it did reach down to swat her.

She had already thought that she was doomed, with only this blunt shield as a weapon. Now she was sure of it. How could she win when she had nothing to fight with?

Letting out a deep breath, she rolled around the strikes and just kept slamming. If this wasn't a dream, she'd be black and blue by now. Ah, yes, all those bruises she was glad she didn't need to heal or nurse when doing things around her home. This repeated, over and over again, until the shadow gave a death rattled and slapped her into the air.

She landed with a heavy crunch that would normally mean broken bones--and then gasped as her shadow returned to her feet. And then darkness pooled around her and she screamed again because damn it all, no, she was not going to be drowned again!

It was a struggle to free herself and nothing she could do freed her from the dark sludge crawling up her legs, her arms, around her chest and face--!

* * *

_You will be fine, Little One, because you can open the--_

* * *

Xion woke up.


	2. the isles of destiny

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> unbeta`d

The blue sky greeted her, as she woke up. Lazy puffy white clouds rolled across the sky and waves slapped at the shoreline. A lazy breeze rolled over her face and Xion thought: Oh, it was just a dream.

She already knew that. But she guessed her mind just wanted to run on a loop of pointing out the obvious. Xion yawned and wondered if she should sleep again, get that nightmare right out of her mind--But she stopped as she saw a familiar shadow. "Roxas!" She called twisting to look at her blond best friend.

Roxas wore dark black clothing, a tank top and shorts. The tank top was a plain black and the shorts were the same color, but they had a print of a skull and crossbows on it. He had freckles scattered across his nose and shoulders from the sun and all those sunburns he'd suffered from when they were younger.

Well. Not to say that they didn't get sunburns now but they were less severe.

The other teen tilted his head at her, looking faintly amused. "Sleepy head Xion. What're we gonna do with you?" He teased, one hand extended to help her to her feet. She accepted and sighed.

Xion instinctively looked for Lea, their other best friend. The red haired older boy was nowhere to be seen and she frowned. "Where'd Lea go?" She'd almost expected him to be there to, teasing her as badly as Roxas was.

"It's almost the 6 year anniversary, in a couple days." Roxas' voice was solemn as he spoke. "You know, since Isa..."

She winced: It made sense, then, that Lea had left.

"He did help out with the start of the raft, though, so we just need to finish it off before he gets back." Roxas perked up with a grin. "Then he won't call us lazy, when he gets back."

Xion couldn't help her snort of amusement: Out of the three of them, Roxas worked the hardest. As much as Lea wanted to leave the islands and find out the truth of what had happened to Isa, he had a tendency to relax a lot. Xion was probably worse than him in that she could fall asleep anywhere if she laid or sat long enough--but she did try not to.

Roxas patted his shorts and sighed as he turned to the side beach where the raft was hidden from prying eyes. "Anyway, we need to pick up the last things we need and then we can head on home for the night."

"What's that?" Xion wondered as she bounced past Roxas, turning to grin at him with a wide smile.

He snorted at her reaction. "Cloth, rope, and a couple more logs. We need to make the raft a little wider for the three of us. Think you can get those for me while I go make sure the raft is still in one piece?"

She grinned and bounced past, careful not to get any sand in her shoes. Never again will she get sand in her shoes...or clothes either...sand was way too itchy. "Yeah yea, I got you back, Roxas! See you later, after I get everything!"

Roxas laughed and then walked away, a dark cloud against the golden sands of the island. She smiled and then turned around. Alright! She needed to track down some logs--which could be anywhere, really. The first thing she thought of was the shack that sheltered the stair way to the outer islet. Maybe their parents had left some old logs from building everything there.

Rolling her shoulders, Xion started walking to the shack but stopped as someone above her yelled her name. She looked up and-- "Hey, Xion!!" Marlene waved at her from above, grinning ear from ear. "What are you up to?"

Oh no.

Xion grinned at Marlene but knew that Marlene would tell the adults about the raft they were working on. She'd have to be careful about this, without revealing anything she was looking for. Xion rolled her eyes and walked closer to where Marlene stood above her.

"Nothing much! Just picking things up around the island! What about you?" Xion asked.

Marlene leaned forward with a grin. "Just keeping an eye out--Biggs and Wedge seem to be planning something. Knowing them, they'll probably dump something on someone, so be careful."

She nodded: Xion was well aware of the bucket pranks Biggs and Wedge got up to. Last time, a couple months ago, they had set up a bucket of living crabs. Lea had been the poor victim of that horrible prank and he still complained some times that he had scars, the poor thing.

Both Xion and Roxas were well aware the older boy didn't have any scars whatsoever from that prank.

"I'll be careful. Oh!" Xion clasped her hands behind her back with a grin. "Have you seen any cloth or rope? Me and Roxas are working on something to cheer him up when we show him it tomorrow."

Marlene hummed. "Today is that day huh? ....Well, I haven't seen any rope, but there's a cloth up here in the tree. I can toss it down for you?" Xion grinned at her as Marlene vanished over the edge: At least now she won't question why she was gathering things. Success in protecting the raft!

When she returned, Xion raised her hands to catch the cloth that half flutter, half plummeted from the top of the tree. After catching it, she waved up to Marlene with a loud thanks and then began searching for the rope she still needed. The logs could wait after she brought the cloth and rope to Roxas.

Eventually, she realized one horrifying thing: She needed to climb up the ladder to the ship hull if she wanted to search for the rope more. Okay, so it wasn't really a ship hull, but it was originally built to look like one so she felt justified in calling it one. There was no other way up besides the ladder, in any case, and she really didn't want to put the cloth down.

She dropped it off with Roxas grudgingly, knowing the only other option was to lose it somewhere else.

Xion climbed the ladder and then had the strangest flash of the dream she had almost completely forgotten. Had she done this in the dream, too? She wasn't able to spare more thought to that train of thought, as she spotted Biggs and wedge out of the corner of her eye. Just as Marlene had said, they were doing something with a bucket and she eyed the warily as she quietly edged around them. She was not going to get caught by them.

And then Wedge looked up and ginned. "Hey Xion! What're you doing up here all on your lonesome?" Biggs looked up too, eyeing her with interest.

Biggs was the more responsible of the two and usually managed to make sure their pranks wouldn't hurt anyone, the Lea-crab incident being one of the exceptions. It was just too bad that Biggs had never managed to convince Wedge to just. Not do any pranks.

"Just looking for some rope," She said with feigned cheer, "I'm making something to surprised Lea with tomorrow, to cheer him up!"

Wedge's grin was ear to ear. "Oh, really? That's interesting, me and Biggs were doing the same--"

A hand shoved Wedge's face to the side, prompting him into silence. "Rope's over in the corner, Xion." Biggs spoke, clearly intending to keep the prank he and Wedge were planning a secret.

She nodded to them and slowly made her way to the rope, keeping one eye on the prankster duo with every step. They didn't make a move towards her and she took the chance to scoop up the coiled rope and then tear away and down the ladder. She almost skipped down the ladder and winced as she landed. If she had landed just a half inch differently, she probably would've rolled her ankle. Oh well.

Xion hurried to head back to Roxas, the rope thrown over her shoulder. The spiky blond looked up at her arrival, and grinned at her. "Hey, Xion. You got the rope and logs?" He tilted his head with his hands on his hips.

"Mmhm, I got the rope." She picked the rope off her shoulder. "I don't have the logs but I have an idea of where I can find them. Do you think you can wait a little longer for me to pick them up?"

Roxas laughed and nodded. "Yes I can, mom. No worries." She puffed at him for the mom comment before leaving: If he wasn't so reckless and got himself hurt all the time, maybe she wouldn't be so fussy over him all the time. Besides, her comment wasn't even a fussy one! Honestly, the disrespect.

She trudged back through the sand and up the staircase inside the shack. Xion peered around the entrance and over her shoulder at the tree. Marlene was eyeballing the ship hull and wasn't paying her any attention. She turned and jogged to the small islet with the large palm and paopu trees. It didn't take her long to find one, as there was one just laying by the edge overlooking the ocean.

Heading down the shack steps, Xion searched for another log but come up with nothing except a rotted rope. Great where was she going to get a second log from? Xion lugged the log back to Roxas and stopped as she passed under the bridge to Roxas. Because there it was, a second log hidden in the shadows of the bridge, resting in the sands. Xion glared at it, as if it had personally offended her somehow.

Well, it had. Because why the heck hadn't she seen it earlier?

Sighing she continued taking the first of her two logs to Roxas. She dropped it off and Roxas disappeared with to lay it with the raft while she returned to the shaded log. Xion was worried that the log might be rotted, but no. It seemed fine--dry and sturdy. That thought made her grin because this would work all too well for their raft.

Xion jogged after Roxas and pushed open the side door. The door was flimsy and old and she wondered if this time the door would collapse. But no, it was fine and would continue its work as a door until the next time someone pushed it open with something other than their hand and broke it. It was....probably inevitable at this point. She'd have to mention it to her dad soon, before they left.

Roxas was kneeling by the raft when she arrived, already pushing the log she had brought before against the other logs. She walked closer. "Hey Roxas!" The blond jolted as she knelt closer. "Got the second log--What now?"

He looked up and pointed to the other side of the raft. "Roll it up to that side--I'll tie them so that it'll stay in place. Knowing Lea, he'll probably try to make sure everything is actually put together properly but you know." Better he only check, Xion filled in internally, then have to do it all himself after the anniversary today.

Isa...The blue haired boy had been the same age as Lea, before he and his parents disappeared. A storm had torn across the islands out of nowhere and the house Isa's family had lived in was just gone, as if it had never been there to begin with. She and Roxas had used to go to the anniversary themselves, until the year before. It had just become too awkward for the two of them and--well. As much as they didn't want to admit, they were both starting to forget the blue haired boy.

Lea, though, Lea still remembered him. So Roxas and Xion didn't want to tell him that they had forgotten.

Regardless, that was why they were there and not on the main island's shrine, where the dead and lost were mourned. And they were still going to go looking for Isa--Because Lea was sure he was still alive and just stranded on another world somewhere. Roxas wanted to help and search for his own home while Xion...She just wanted to be with her friends.

With one final tug, they tightened the raft together. She grinned at the finished product and reached out to fist bump Roxas. The blond responded with his own fist and a grin. Half done, Xion thought, All they need to do now was gather food.

Tomorrow, they decided, as they went to clean up the obstacle course they made for fun. Tomorrow they'd gather different types of food and water for their trip.

* * *

Xion laid face first on her bed, mumbling sleepily. It was too early to go to the island, she thought, because honestly, it was 8am! No one had even eaten breakfast yet.

So of course Lea and Roxas would show up to roll her out of bed and poke her awake. Damn her best friends.

"Why are you waking me up right now?" Xion glared at them from where she had hidden her face beneath her folded arms. "It's way too early to be doing anything, especially not running off to the play island to do stuff."

Roxas poked her ribs. "We need to show Lea the work we did, right? You're the one who suggested it yesterday, remember?"

She stared up at him with a despairing look. How could her best friends betray her this way? Lea leaned forward and hefted her up with expert ease. Xion puffed at him: He was ruining her dramatics! He just laughed at her put out expression.

Wiggling free, Xion said, "Fine, I'll get ready. But you two need to leave, got it!" Lea waved his hands in a shooing motion as he and Roxas backed out of the room. She rolled her eyes before picking out her clothes for the day and heading down. Xion paused as she saw Roxas and Lea chatting with her parents and she puffed in amusement. Of course they'd get distracted by that--then again, she was well aware that her parents considered her best friends to be their own kids.

"Hey, you dorks, I'm ready to go." Xion grinned as the four jolted at her appearance. "Or are you two too busy having fun talking to my parents?"

Her mother leaned over the counter to ruffle hair, causing her to yelp in protest. There goes her naturally flat hair, dammit. "Glad to see you're up, sweetie." Her mother teased. "Are you already going out?"

Xion sighed. "Yeah. We're heading over to the play island to hang out all day--so we're picking up some snacks. Right, Lea, Roxas?" The blond gave her a thumbs up while Lea grinned at her.

"Well, if you say so." Her mother patted her on the head as her father shrugged his shoulders and disappeared into the backyard, ready to get to work on fixing up their shed after the last summer storm.

Her parents were always this way, she thought. Fretful but kind and ready to do whatever they needed to make Xion happy. It was something she was grateful for, but it didn't change the fact that she and her friends were gunning to leave. Yeah, maybe helping Roxas find his home was part of it--but Lea really seemed to be keen on finding something on Isa too.

There was just so much they wanted to do, and none of it was on the island. Maybe if it was possible to do it on the island, she'd feel guiltier. But it wasn't and so she may never know if that was possible.

As it was, the three of them retreated to the market. Lea had already suggested buying a lot of dried goods, like dried meats and fruits, because they needed something that would last a while. Normal meat and fruit just wouldn't cut it, even if they did have a cooler with them.

"What about water?" Roxas asked as he squinted at their basket of stuff. "We can't drink out of the sea, you know."

Lea laughed and ruffled Roxas' quills. The blond squawked, swatting at Lea's hand because Xion knew Roxas hated being treated like a kid. "I've already got a bunch of water bottles waiting for us. Also got a thing that will help clear out sea water, once we run out of the bottled stuff." Lea explained.

Xion hummed, her hands clasped behind her back as she turned to walk backwards from her friends. "Which means we're practically ready! Though we should probably bring our swimsuits, under our clothes, you know."

Roxas coughed sharply. "Swimsuits? Why?"

"Because we might fall into the water?" Xion rolled her eyes with a grin. "Do you want to have to deal with soaked clothes?"

Lea hummed as he tapped his fingers against the grocery basket. "Thaaaat's a good point." He grinned. "When we leave tomorrow, we'll have to make sure we bring the swim suits and sunscreen, yeah?" The two younger teenagers rolled their eyes at him and grinned at each other as he grasped his chest in faux pain.

* * *

"Xioooooon!" Selphie seemed to leap out of the shadows of the island, throwing her arms around Xion's shoulder. The brunette girl laughed brightly as Xion flailed in her arms, the latter taking care to drop her bag of 'snacks' back into her boat.

Xion gently pushed Selphie away. "Hey, Selphie. What's up?" She forced a grin, confused as to why Selphie was talking to her. Don't get her wrong, they were friends, sort of, but she was usually hanging out with Tidus and Wakka.

(Of course, Xion also preferred Marlene--if only because Marlene was consistent to Selphie always rapidly changing moods.) 

Selphie laughed a bit, knocking her knuckles against her forehead. "I've been wondering--what exactly are you three up to?" She asked, going from cheerful to dead serious.

She went still: Maybe it was silly of her to be so shocked by Selphie knowing, as they hadn't exactly been hiding it very well, but it was still did. "What do you mean, Selphie?" She asked.

"You three have been building something," Selphie said seriously, "I want to know what the heck you three are up to."

Clicking her tongue, Xion shook her head. "Sorry, Selphie. I can't--tell you that." She wouldn't break the trust Roxas and Lea had in her--The trust their friendship had been built on for years and years now.

Selphie opened her mouth to argue but closed it as Roxas and Lea stepped onto the dock. She smiled brightly at the two of them. "H-hey guys! Nice to see you two!" Taking a step back, she pointed over her shoulder. "I'm heading back over to Tidus and Wakka, see you guys later!"

Closing her eyes, she let out a deep breath. Jeez, their plans had almost crashed and burned right before her eyes. There was no way Selphie wouldn't have told their parents that they were planning to make a run for the sea on the raft.

She looked up as Lea put his hand on her shoulder. "What was that about?" He asked, raising one eyebrow at her.

Groaning, Xion pinched the bridge of her nose. "It was just--Selphie being Selphie, I guess. She wanted to know what we were building." She paused. "And no, I have no idea how she knew we were building something, don't ask."

Lea laughed sheepishly at her glower and ruffled her hair. "Alright, if you say so." He knelt and grabbed her bag of 'snacks' from her boat as Xion straightened out her ruffled hair. "Me and Roxas will take these to the cooler--I've got it tucked away in our secret place. Can you check up on the raft?" He nodded towards the far cove that only Xion held the key to.

Xion crossed her arms behind her head with a sigh. "Yeah, yeah...See you guys later." _Maybe I can get started on those charms,_ she thought to herself, _I might be able to finish them before we head off..._

Her two best friends disappeared further into the island's interior, where a small cave was hidden. Xion was almost sure that the others knew of it but just let the three of them have it--especially after they had started the haunting the place after Isa's disappearance.

She wondered then, as she locked the door of the bay behind her, what Isa would think of this. the way she had remembered it, Isa had always been the smart one, who had his life all together. If they had still planned to do this, would he have some other plan for them? Or would he just disapprove of them going off at all?

But then, would they have ever thought to, with Isa here and not missing?

Smacking her cheeks, she huffed to herself. "Stop thinking about what ifs!" She scolded her reflection in the waves. "What ifs are just that--I need to think about here and now."

Fingering her crown pendant, Xion sighed and shook herself from her thoughts. Charms now, thinking about possibilities later. She was glad, though, that she had enough shells and twine to make all three of the charms...

Not that she was letting either of her friends see them until she was done: Thalassa Sea charms worked better when the people they were for didn't know about them before they were made. It was a superstition, of course, but Xion wanted to be sure. Her friends' safety was paramount to her.

She was finishing threading the first of the charms--the one she had already thought to give to Roxas--when her friends came back, having snuck through the hole the three of them had made earlier that week. Hiding her work beneath the extra sails, Xion looked up at them with a grin. "You two seem excited."

"We saw someone from another world!" Roxas burst out first, his eyes wide with what seemed to be shock.

Lea on the other hand...seemed more than just excited. Euphoric, maybe. "This is just the proof we need to get out of here," Lea said, serious despite his joy, "We know other worlds exist--that guy and Roxas are enough proof--and we can get to them through the raft."

Hesitating, Xion wondered if she should voice a thought she had: Would the raft really work? Would it really take them to other worlds? She hoped it would--but as the hours tick away to their sailing date, she became more and more worried. "Are you sure?" She finally blurted. "Are you sure it will work? Yes, other worlds exist--but are you sure the raft alone is enough?"

"It has to be," Lea said with dark intensity.

* * *

Lea's behavior was starting to concern Xion. Ever since he and Roxas had returned from their run in with the other worldly stranger, he'd had this strange swivel eyed intensity that was terrifying her. And not just her, either: Roxas seemed just as unnerved.

Xion had been funneling her nerves and fears into the charm making. Her charm for Roxas was nearly finished, save for the single shell she still needed to add to it. Of course, her charm for Lea wasn't done yet and she wouldn't even start on her own until she had finished theirs.

She almost wished she had started on Lea's first. Perhaps it would stop him being so damn intense and be more...him. It was like something had possessed him and--Xion took a deep breath out. _Dumb, dumb, dumb,_ she thought. Wondering about Lea's sudden strange behavior won't fix it.

How can she fix it, she wondered. Maybe Xion can't--maybe not yet.

As it was, Lea had decided to head home first, of the three of them. Xion almost followed after him, fearful for what he might do, but Roxas held her back, shaking his head. They watched him go, side by side, before Roxas pulled her to the end of the dock and sat down with a flop.

"Okay, so please tell me I'm not the only one who is freak out by Lea right now." Roxas all but pleaded with her.

Xion relaxed, her shoulders slumped with a sigh. "No, you're not. Lea...he's being really strange, the past couple of hours." She paused before sitting down next to him. "What actually happened in the secret place?"

Roxas frowned in thought as he kicked the still water beneath the dock. "Nothing really that strange, besides that guy we saw. They disappeared even before we left--and after that Lea started acting really...intense." Like he'd been about to blow something up, with his bare hands.

She clenched her hands on her lap. "If I wasn't scared of what he might do, I might've said we should push the sailing day forward a little bit. But Lea...Lea isn't going to react well, right now, if I ask that." Xion bit the inside of her lip. How could this be happening? None of this felt right and she wanted to yell.

Nothing had felt right, since that dream she couldn't quite remember.

"Roxas...do you think we'll be okay?" She whispered as she stared out towards the sun bleeding into the sea, towards the sunset. Will we be okay, if the worst comes?

Roxas leaned back on his hands and closed his eyes. "I don't know, Xion. I really don't know."

* * *

Xion fiddled with the charms and the thalassa shells, counting them over and over again until she finally gave up and put them in her craft bag. It was small, just large enough to carry her shells, thread, and needle. Just enough for her needs.

She looked up towards the ceiling, at the growing shadows and the wind blowing against her home. There was a heavy feeling in her chest and on her shoulders, like something had laid itself there. As if it was waiting for something.

That was when she looked out into the darkness of the night, at the roiling clouds and sea and she realized something. It's not a summer storm, out there. It was not a hurricane either--which begged the question: what was it?

Normally, she would never even consider leaving her home in the middle of a preparing storm. Normally, she would be sealing the windows and doors with her family and light some candles with her parents while they read some books.

Except she saw Roxas's spiky blond hair stark through the darkness as he headed down to the beach, running like a man possessed.

Xion picked up her craft bag, sick it inside her jacket, and then shimmied out of her window. She never heard her mother's voice calling to her to dinner as she too ran to the beach--to where her family's two person boat was tied to the docks.

"Roxas!" She called out as she spotted his boat out in sea. "Roxas...!" He didn't so much as twitch towards as he paddled his tiny boat towards the play island. Clenching her hands and ignoring the heavy feeling pressing down on her chest and shoulders, she untied her boat from the docks and followed Roxas across the sea to the play island.

By the time she caught up to Roxas' tied up boat, Roxas had already vanished into the island's interior. It wasn't just Roxas' boat there, though. Lea's boat was also tied there and she wondered: Did Roxas see Lea and follow him? How dangerous--and yes, she knew that was hypocritical.

Shaking her head, she tied up her boat quickly before turning towards the island. Okay, Lea first--two of them could find Roxas faster than her alone. She was just worried he'd still be acting strangely...

**_WATCH OUT!!_ **

Xion jolted as something lashed out from the shadows. A small beady thing crawled out towards her, its antennae wiggling at her as its yellow eyes burned from its tiny body of shadows. "What...?" She whispered, scared. That thing looked strangely familiar--like she had seen something like it before.

Grabbing Roxas' wooden sword that rested on the dock's supports. Clicking her tongue, Xion swatted the shadow thing because for as terrifying as it was, it still seemed fragile. Except her sword swing seemed to go straight through its body, as if it wasn't really there.

She barely dodged its second claw swipe, shocked as she was because. How can that sword do nothing? It was wood and she had put all her strength into the swing--a swing that had seemingly phased right through its body. She kicked out with her foot and ran, not even looking to see if her foot had connected.

Even if the sword was useless, it sometimes did connect--just enough to knock the shadows away from her. She wished she had more than just that fight here--but even if she did, Xion had never been as good as Roxas at swords.

The island itself felt different, even when you ignored the living shadows crawling across it. The tree branches rattled ominously and not a soul could be seen. No seagulls, no little mice scampering through the undergrowth: They were all gone. Xion was scared because--What if Lea and Roxas were gone too?

Life drained away from her home, like it had never been. She clenched her hands against the wooden sword and she jogged through the sand, ignoring the shadows except to kick them out of her way. It was as she was kicking some of them out of her way that she noticed red out of the corner of her eye--red, against the stormy gray skies.

"Lea!" She yelled, climbing up to the mini island just off the coast of the play island. As she crossed the wooden bridge, Lea slowly turned to her, as if surprised and delighted by her arrival.

His smile made her shoulders stiffen. "Xion," Lea said, "Good--I was worried you and Roxas wouldn't catch up and we'd get separated."

She slowed to a stop, clenched her hand against the crown resting on her collar bone. "Lea, what are you talking about? There's a storm! We need to get to shelter--The secret place--"

"No." Lea cut her off. "Xion, remember when you said that the raft might work? Well, I know this will work. We won't have to worry about the raft, anymore." He smiled coldly.

Xion shook her head. "This isn't what I meant when I said that--Lea, the darkness!" Tendrils of shadows and darkness reached up from around Lea's feet, clearly intending to swallow him whole, like some horrid squid of darkness. She stepped forward and then flinched as the darkness burned against her skin.

Lea reached out to her. "Xion, take my hand. We'll get off this place, we'll go find Isa and Roxas' home, and we'll finally be free to see the worlds. No--we'll just be free."

Maybe she could pull him free. Her arms pin wheeled as she tried to grab his hand, to pull him away from the darkness that was starting to crawl across his shoulders and weave around Lea's arms. "Lea, listen to me. We need to get Roxas. We need--to go home. Our parents need us...!"

The red head shook his head as he tried to grasp Xion's hand, as the darkness started weaving its way to her hands. It felt like it was trying to pull hrt in, like it was pulling Lea away. She grit her teeth: This was scary. Terrifying--but she can't lose another friend, not like this.

"Lea!" She gasped as the darkness surged and roiled around them until all she could see was Lea slowly slipping away from her until all there was was darkness. _No_ , she thought, _I can't...Roxas needs us, Lea._

**_Take it._ **

Xion choked as something bright surged from her hand and pierced through the darkness. She fell to her knees on the sandy ground of the mini isle, Lea nowhere to be seen. "What is going on?" She whispered down to the **_Keyblade_** in her hands. "I can't...Lea is gone. Roxas is--"

The secret place. That place was safe from the storms, despite the hole in the ceiling. Getting a little wet was something she could live with, if it meant she could make sure Roxas was safe--and he was probably there, waiting for someone, if he had half a brain he claimed to have.

Swallowing the loss heavy in her heart, Xion trekked away from the mini isle and leapt down from the bridge to the sandy shore. She jogged away towards the inners of island, where the winds were not as strong and the rain that had begun couldn't break through the tree cover. It felt far more eerie than it had ever had before, even taking into account the shadows that still attacked her.

On instinct, she slapped one with the heavy keyblade she carried and it crumbled beneath her blow, the darkness billowing away as something pink floated away and vanished. Xion stared and then her eyes widened: She could fight, now. She could fight and win.

Bearing her teeth in a fierce smile, Xion dived through the darkness with her keyblade, defending herself against the onslaught. Eventually she slowed as she found the secret place--or where it was supposed to be. Covering the entrance was an ornate door of white marble, which was something she had never seen before in person on an actual house, let alone a cave on an island too small to actually build a town on.

The silver and gold key in her hand suddenly snapped up and a light zipped from the end towards the door. She heard the distinct sound of a door unlocking as the doors opened ever so slightly, as if it was an invitation. Xion swallowed and pushed through, closing them behind her and hoping that it'd keep the shadows out. "Roxas?" She called out, praying to the seas that he would answer. "Roxas, are you here?"

She stopped at the end of the tunnel to the main cave. Roxas stood in the center, his back to her as he studied the knob less wooden door against the cave wall. The door they'd always ignored, when they'd played in here growing up.

"Roxas?" Xion stepped closer, her free hand up to touch his shoulder. Except she never got close enough: As she approached, the door jerked open and pure darkness tumbled out along with a fierce wind that rivaled a hurricane's. Roxas was pitched off his feet and towards her--and she tried to grab him. She did! But somehow, he slipped from her grasp and out of her sight. "No!" She screamed against the winds as she was dragged away and into shadows.

* * *

Sand stuck to her cheek as she came to.

Xion struggled to her feet, ignoring the sluggish pull at her limbs. For a moment, she forgot what had happened, that her friends had vanished. And then it all come back, rushing in like the tide. Aghast, she immediately looked for Roxas, who was nowhere to be seen.

Actually, there wasn't much to see at all. All that seemed to be left of her home was a single piece of land, with broken docks and boats. The cooler that had been stowed in the secret place was on its side, trapped beneath the only two trees on the entire...island? Xion didn't know what to call it.

Above her head was a swirling vortex of purples and blacks that seemed to sucking up fragments of land that floated through the air. She wondered what it was--and then had to stop wondering as a massive shadow peeled itself off the ground.

She knew this shadow. It was the same one from her dream, the only thing she could still remember clearly even now. It peered down at her, as if surprised she was there, before it reached down towards her. _It's going to kill me_ , she thought and raised her keyblade to strike it.

The keyblade seemed to repulse the shadow as it shifted and shriek-groaned as it pulled its hand back. She thought she'd be safe--until it pulled its hand back and punched the ground only inches from her feet. The earth shook and she stumbled back as a dark portal opened up, more of the tiny shadows crawling out and towards her.

Oh heck no. Xion brandished her keyblade and started her defense.

It was exhausting. She didn't know how long the cycle went--The punch of darkness, the orbs it flung at her, the little shadows that chased her--but it went on and on until, rather suddenly, the whole world seemed to tremble.

**_It’s gone, they took it._ **

_Took what?_ She thought at the voice when a fierce wind blew up towards the purple-and-black portal above her head. The world continued to tremble and shake, the massive shadow pitched off its feet and flying up towards the portal as well.

She grabbed a tree as she took was flung into the air. The cooler was pulled free from the tree and she grabbed that too, intent to keep as much of herself and her world together as she could. But...no luck, because the very floating island she had been standing on moment before broke apart.

"No!" Xion cried out as the tree broke free and she, with the cooler, were lifted up and into the portal. Once more, all she saw was darkness and--

* * *

_"Don't go!" She cried against his pants leg, hugging it tightly. "Please! I'm--I'll get scared, if you go away!"_

_A hand reached down and mushed her hair. "its okay, Shi. I'll be back soon, okay? Me and Cloud--We gotta find some people and then we'll be back. Promise."_

_"Y-you gotta come back!" She looked up into blue eyes framed with spiky black hair. The owner of the hand knelt down and hugged her tight and whispered something like static into her ear. Whatever it was, she couldn't hear it, not really. But she said, "O-okay. I-I'll keep Ro` company too. He's gonna be lonely."_

_There was a laugh from the blue eyes. "Of course! Cloud will be happy someone is looking after him. Take care of yourself, okay, Xion?"_

_"I will! I promise, just like you promise to come home!"_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> xion: oh the sword doesn't work  
> xion: [kicks a heartless}  
> xion: well this does so i'm going to do this now.

**Author's Note:**

> ye it's xion
> 
> i almost wrote h name with sh instead?? because she's supposed to be a 'normal girl' here but. then i'd have to find an alt writing for Roxas' name and i couldn't be bothered.
> 
> I've been meaning to write this for a long while so i'm glad i finally finished it!! i'm gonna try dedicating each chapter to a single world to keep my sanity/so it'll be relatively 'short' chapter wise. Word wise...it'll probably get prtty long


End file.
